Barely started, the Zagora watermelon campaign in Morocco suffered a major blow yesterday, May 1^st. A violent storm accompanied by torrential rain and dense hail destroyed entire watermelon areas. The damage is extensive, to the extent of irreparably ruining the campaign for Zagora’s growers.

A local grower said, on condition of anonymity, that “the hailstorms have completely destroyed the watermelon surface in the El Faija area, south of Zagora, which accounts for 60-70% of the region’s volumes. We’re talking about 700 growers who have not yet harvested 90-95% of their area and who lost everything in the space of 10 minutes of dense hailstones. The damage is catastrophic for the entire economy of the region, which looks forward to the watermelon season every year. The losses suffered by growers will be passed on to farm workers, seed suppliers, and the local economy as a whole.”

The farmer continues: “This situation could take on dramatic proportions later on. They will default on payments to their suppliers of seeds and agricultural inputs, as well as to their banks. The campaign is a total failure, because some growers who were not affected by the storm, in locations close to Zagora airport, for example, are affected by the outbreak of a new disease”.

Ahmed Bouljid, a watermelon exporter, says, “The damage is heavy, and represents a large share of the region’s production, which covers a month’s worth of exports, completely wiped out. There will be a 15-20 day gap in the market, until the next harvest in other regions. Watermelon prices will skyrocket in the meanwhile. Based on estimates I received from growers and confirmed by seed suppliers, 4,000-5,000 tonnes of watermelons were lost yesterday. This represents half of the region’s volumes this season, given that almost 3,500 tonnes have already been harvested, and 2,000-2,500 tonnes are in still to be harvested in intact locations. “

Ismail from Jawhara Fruits says, “Growers in large areas of Zagora have lost everything, especially in the localities of Lamghader, Bouzgar, Zaouit El Henna, El Faija, and others. This is effectively the end of the campaign for them.”

Said Aghzou, CEO of Valyour, says, “The storm was already announced by the meteorological services, but we didn’t expect it to be of this magnitude. Some areas, such as Mirs, were spared, but vast areas were lost elsewhere. Damage varies from grower to grower, with some having lost up to 60% of their season’s volumes, i.e., unharvested volumes at this stage of the season. In our case, we have lost 40-45% of our volumes in this region. This will create a 20-day gap on the market until the first harvest on our farms in the Taroudant region. Prices will rise during this period, and we won’t be able to satisfy all our customers’ orders.”

The damage also rendered several farms inaccessible. Nasser Bouchhar, a road haulier, says, “The main roads in Zagora are intact and accessible. But the tracks to reach some farms are currently muddy, and trucks can’t access them, and certainly can’t return with a load of watermelons weighing 30 tonnes or more. This means that even the farms that still have watermelons can’t make deliveries. It will take no less than ten days of wind and sunlight for the tracks to dry out and become drivable.”

For more information:
Ahmed Bouljid
Entrepôt Frigorifique Lexus
Tel: +212 661-177735
Email: [email protected]

Said Aghzou
Valyour
Tel: +212 661552683
Email: [email protected]

Ismail Belkadi
Jawhara Fruits
Email: [email protected]

Nasser Bouchhar
Truck driver
Tel: +212 641416041